


I'll Love You Until My Life is Exhausted

by PastelRaccoon



Category: Pulse (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Like Big Time End of the Comic Spoilers, More like lots of hurt and little comfort, Not Beta Read, Short One Shot, Song Inspired, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-29 18:44:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21414895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PastelRaccoon/pseuds/PastelRaccoon
Summary: Lynn visits a rather familiar grave.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 7





	I'll Love You Until My Life is Exhausted

**Author's Note:**

  * For [NovaZeroZero](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NovaZeroZero/gifts).

> Heavily inspired by [Kimi no Kioku/Memories of You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHdOXCoja-c) from Persona 3
> 
> A "What if?" scenario that I actually thought about a lot...  
But all aboard the pain train! I'll be your conductor today uwu

Lynn’s eyes intensely stared down at the grave that was standing tall in the evening sun, bathed in orange light. The sweet smell of the flowers she held in her hands wafted up towards her face and she took a deep inhale of their scent before she carefully placed them into the attached vase. Slowly, she slid down to her knees and brushed her fingertips against the surprisingly cool granite.

Her index finger idly traced the first letter of Mel’s name before she felt a searing hot jab stab at her ribs. Pain and longing shot through her veins that boiled up to scorching tears that streamed down her face. Her nails dug into the stone as hiccups shook her shoulders.

“Mel… I miss you so much…” Lynn choked out her strained, high-pitched, yet quiet words. Every fiber of her being hoped she was able to hear her, wherever she was. Her other hand clutched tightly at her chest. No, at her heart. _Her_ heart. Not Lynn’s, Mel’s. The sudden realization made her sob heavier and her shudders to become more violent.

It was the last gift she ever gave her. She’d never see her bright smile again; her laugh, her dark eyes that encouraged her to fight. How Mel would cry in her arms or how she’d get angry if she didn’t take her medication. They were all distant memories that she had to hold close. It’s all she had left aside from her heart that still beat with her warmth inside her chest.

Bit by bit, she started to pull herself together. It was a trial; it hurt, but she had to stay strong for her. Everything she gave her and everything she put her through would have been for nothing if she didn’t hold on. With a shaky breath and a loud sniffle, she swiped her nose against her sleeve. She lifted a trembling hand up one more time to rest against the stone with a weak smile.

“You gave me a reason to live. I’ll keep fighting for you, Mel.” Lynn leaned in to press her forehead against the tombstone. She swore she felt Mel’s warm arms around her again and she choked down another sob that threatened to spill out. “I promise.”

* * *

Lynn remembered the day she was told they found her a heart. She remembered how ecstatic she was and couldn’t wait to tell Mel, but she had to wait. She knew she’d be able to smile and tell her they did it once she woke up.

But then she remembered when she did wake up. How her chest hurt but the new heart that thudded behind her ribs hurt even more when the doctor that showed up wasn’t Mel. How he told her she died in an accident… And how he broke the news to her that the heart beating within her was hers. That was when the pain was the worst of all…

* * *

When Lynn finally got home, she dropped heavily onto her bed and just wanted to sleep. She could feel her eyes were still red and puffy from earlier. They stung from being all out of tears. She dragged her gaze across her room until they fell onto the rabbit Mel had given her during her time in the hospital on her dresser. She felt how her mouth twitched up into a small smile when she stood up.

She scooped up the bunny into her hands and held him high above her head. Whenever she held onto it, she couldn’t help but feel at least a bit of comfort in the static that now surrounded her world.

She held the plush close to her chest until she heard a subtle rattling sound inside the rabbit. Her eyes went wide as she remembered Mel’s words and how she said to put her ear to its heart after her surgery. Frantically, she dug out a pair of scissors and slid them under the large stitches across its chest.

“Sorry buddy.” Lynn mumbled a swift apology to the stuffed animal before she hurriedly snipped the threads in one fell swoop.

Her hands shook uncontrollably when she pulled out the folded over piece of paper that was carefully tied around two rings from the stuffing. She collapsed to her knees when she saw the rings catch some of the light from the bulb on the ceiling. The tremors in her hands slowly engulfed her body when she unfolded the paper. She held her breath as she read the words presented to her: _Will you marry me?_

Again, she felt tears sting the corners of her eyes before her head tipped back as she wailed to the heavens. She collapsed forward until her forehead pressed against the cool floorboards and she was curled in on herself on the ground. Her left hand tightly gripped the paper while the right desperately held onto the rings until they painfully dug into her palm.

Grieving howls tore through her throat as tears burned her cheeks when they finally spilled over. The cold claws of reality ripped into her torso and she almost let it engulf her. She let out one more lamenting sob before she dragged herself into an upright position. A broken, but somehow strangely content smile was spread across her tear streaked face.

“Mel… I’m such a fool. You loved me so completely.” Lynn finally relaxed her hands to smooth out the paper and take a better look at the simple rings. She carefully put the paper on her dresser next to the picture of herself and Mel that she kept. She turned the rings over in her hand. One had a small engraved L and the other an M. She swallowed and her smile grew a bit wider as she slid the one with the L onto her left ring finger. “I wish I could have told you ‘yes…’”

* * *

The next day at her university, Lynn seemed to be in a better state. She was back to her brighter self and smiling as she always did. Renny had heard her crying so loudly that night and it hurt to hear his sister in so much pain. He hated that there wasn’t anything he could do to make her feel better when it came to Mel. Although, whatever happened yesterday seemed to help her a lot. Whatever it was, he was grateful.

He stuck his hands deep into his pockets and returned her smile when she waved at him. They walked along back towards their house, as they always did, but Lynn suddenly stopped at a crosswalk. She was staring intently across the street and holding her breath. Renny’s eyebrows knit together with concern.

“Everything okay?”

“Y-Yeah. It’s nothing. I thought I just saw Mel.” Lynn answered. She stopped for a moment in the middle of the sidewalk and he saw her touch the hollow of her throat. He noticed she was tracing a small silver ring that was hanging around her neck on a thin chain and another matching one on the hand she had at her neckline. Renny’s smile softened and he draped an arm around her shoulders to hug her close.

“Y’know what? Maybe you did. I’m sure she’s watching over you every day. No, I’m positive she is.”

Lynn tensed a bit under his arm, but she quickly relaxed to tilt her head up to the sky. She almost looked like she was going to cry again. “Hey, Renny?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

He smiled a bit wider and he looked up at the sky with her.

“Yeah. Don’t mention it.”

**Author's Note:**

> Whoo, I never, _ever_ write angst, so this was certainly something of a challenge for me, oof ;;;
> 
> Was listening to my playlist on youtube when Memories of You popped on and I went... "Okay, but what if...?"


End file.
